Sonatrach Broadens Industrial Horizons: Somiz Targets Italian Market Alongside Cargill Biofuel Talks
At the "Mattei Method 2026" forum in Rome, Sonatrach unveiled its international expansion ambitions through deploying its maintenance subsidiary Somiz in Italy and exploring a biofuel partnership with U.S. giant Cargill.
Speaking at the "Mattei Method 2026" international forum in the Italian capital, Algeria’s national energy giant signaled a clear push to diversify beyond core hydrocarbons by exporting industrial maintenance expertise and tapping into low-carbon fuel value chains.
Sonatrach aims to give a new dimension to its international expansion by exploring partnerships with leading industrial players. Two key prospects highlighted during the gathering on energy security and Euro-Mediterranean industrial integration underscore this shift: opening the Italian market to its industrial maintenance subsidiary Somiz, and assessing a potential collaboration with U.S. agribusiness giant Cargill in the biofuel sector.
Active since 1991, Somiz whose CEO Yazid Kemmoum outlined its 2030 growth roadmap seeks to leverage its domestic track record in mechanical and electrical engineering, instrumentation, and EPC projects to become an integrated international operator. The Augusta refinery in Sicily, operated via Sonatrach Raffineria Italiana (SRI), stands out as a prime gateway. Initiated in 2023 with operational audits in Arzew toward vendor prequalification, this synergy aligns with a €70 million-plus modernization plan approved in early 2024 (backed by over €23 million in Italian public funding) to electrify and decarbonize the Sicilian site, complementing Sonatrach's three fuel depots in Augusta, Naples, and Palermo.
Simultaneously, Sonatrach is evaluating an opportunity with Cargill as the American group looks to Africa to secure alternative feedstocks such as used cooking oil and agricultural residues to meet rising European demand for lower-carbon fuels. Following inconclusive exploratory efforts in Nigeria and Côte d'Ivoire, Cargill is considering partnering with Sonatrach to supply used oils for refinery co-processing. By blending bio-based inputs with fossil fuels in existing refining units, this initiative would position Algeria's energy major on a growing segment of the global energy transition.
Wissem Chergui
